Oshawa, Whitby men promote RAKnominations

Three amigos

Kim Nursall / Toronto Star photo

TORONTO -- Andrew Gronross, left, John Pitman and Andrew Mason, right, are challenging others to perform a random act of kindness in a 'RAKnomination', a positive inversion of a drinking-challenge fad.

A good day ...

Kim Nursall / Toronto Star photo

TORONTO -- Jeff, the homeless man in Toronto who was the recipient of a random act of kindness from three men, two of whom are from Whitby and Oshawa, poses after a shave and a haircut.

It was the quiet, unassuming way Jeff sat on the sidewalk, book in hand, behind a small upside-down hat meant for change from passersby, that caught their attention.

“He wasn’t being aggressive in his panhandling. We just saw him politely say ‘Good morning’ and ‘Hi’ to people, letting them decide if they wanted to help,” said Andrew Mason, who, along with two friends, John Pitman and Andrew Gronross, treated Jeff to a full meal, bought him new clothes and took him to a barber.

“There was just something about Jeff,” said Gronross.

The three men filmed their day with the timid, soft-spoken 40-year-old, who wound up on the streets after the death of his parents in 2000 and subsequent struggles with depression and drugs.

The resulting Youtube clip is part of a recent phenomenon called “RAKnominations” (RAK is short for Random Act of Kindness), in which people videotape themselves doing something nice.

RAKnominations encourage one-upmanship in service of others, as opposed to the sensation’s predecessor: “neknominations,” which encourage one-upmanship in the various (and sometimes fatal) ways people chug alcohol.

“I got the idea after viewing those neknominations online about how kids are getting hurt through the foolish things they’re doing,” said Whitby-native Gronross, 30.

“We wanted to do the opposite and actually spread cheer and good fortune,” said Pitman, 37, from Oshawa.

That good fortune included shopping at Double Take, where they bought Jeff a new wardrobe, including socks, two heavy sweaters, sweatpants, jeans, a belt and a toque. Next was Burger King, where Jeff satiated himself on his favourite meal: a chicken sandwich (they’d offered him a steak dinner, but BK was his choice destination). Lastly, they visited Terminal Barbershop, for a haircut and shave.

“At the end of the day, when we took him back to what he referred to as his home — and what most people would see as sleeping bags — that really broke my heart,” said Oshawa-native Mason, 28. “He was balling his eyes out.”

“We were all a little teary-eyed,” added Pitman. “The entire time he was with us, he never asked for one thing.”

“Other than a good deed coming back to us,” said Gronross.

It was about a month ago that they left Jeff at the Victoria St. steam grate he calls home.

Gronross said some people who saw the video have reported that Jeff is no longer there. He hopes it’s because Jeff made his way into government housing or some other form of shelter.

“Our intention is to go down and find him again, and see if there’s anything else we can do to help him get back on his feet,” he continued.

“Tragedies affect people in different ways, and losing his mom and dad was huge for him and it just sent him on a downward spiral,” Gronross said. “Jeff mentioned that his experience with drugs was because it’s something you’re forced to do on the streets to survive because it keeps you awake and it keeps you alive, and you might just get a bit of happiness from it.”

Besides wishing Jeff all the best, the three friends really hope people realize how easy it is to help others, and the impact it can have.

“Take up the challenge,” said Pitman, “just like the neknominations, where everyone is trying to outdo each other. If everyone tried to outdo us, the world would be a better place.”